How is the computer running?

My computer seems to be running fine now. My most recent scans with Malwarebytes and Avast! turn up no infected items. Speed and performance have improved. Any slow downs or other glitches appear to be related to when Avast! database is updating or when windows automatic updates are coming in. Those have nearly stopped though. Guess I'm pretty much up to date now.

If I could ask one last question concerning that last group of infections turned up by Malwarebytes. Ten of the 11 items show up in the Malwarebytes quarantine, but not the memory module infection. Was that deleted when I restarted?

Thanks again for your patience with me and for all the help. It's been a real learning experience for me.

Yes, those were deleted.

Please download Security Check by screen317 from SpywareInfoforum.org or Changelog.fr.

• Save it to your Desktop.
• Double click SecurityCheck.exe and follow the onscreen instructions inside of the black box.
• A Notepad document should open automatically called checkup.txt; please post the contents of that document.

Here is the security check log. I see Avast! and HijackThis, but no Malwarebytes. Huh.

Results of screen317's Security Check version 0.99.0
Windows XP Service Pack 3
``````````````````````````````
Antivirus/Firewall Check:
Windows Firewall Enabled!
avast! Antivirus
Antivirus up to date!
``````````````````````````````
Anti-malware/Other Utilities Check:
HijackThis 2.0.2
Adobe Flash Player 10
``````````````````````````````
Process Check:
objlist.exe by Laurent
Alwil Software Avast4 aswUpdSv.exe
Alwil Software Avast4 ashServ.exe
Alwil Software Avast4 ashDisp.exe
Alwil Software Avast4 ashMaiSv.exe
Alwil Software Avast4 ashWebSv.exe
``````````````````````````````
DNS Vulnerability Check:
Unknown. This method cannot test your vulnerability to DNS cache poisoning.

`````````End of Log```````````

Well this was just sooo freaky I just had to post about it. I was just sitting here wondering what this DNS Vulnerability Check was and was about to search it online. The show Numbers is on TV and in the episode is about computer hackers. Well just as I was about to start typing in DNS the main character on the show answered the question for me! It's the domain naming system, right? And apparently Security Check was unable to do that part. Just an interesting coincidence.

To be fully correct, it is called Domain Name System, which is a system to translate names in to IP addresses.

Please read the following information that I have provided, which will help you prevent malicious software in the future. Please keep in mind, malware is a continuous danger on the Internet. It is highly important to stay safe while browsing, to prevent re-infection.

Software recommendations

Firewall

• Tallemu Online Armor: the free version is just as good as the premium. I have linked you to the free version.
  
• Comodo Firewall: the free version is just as good as the premium. I have linked you to the free version. The optional security suite enhances the firewall by 40% increase. If you would like to install the suite that includes antivirus, then remove your old antivirus first.
  
• PC Tools Firewall Plus: free and excellent firewall.

AntiSpyware

• SpywareBlaster
  SpywareBlaster is a program that prevents spyware from installing on your computer. A tutorial on using SpywareBlaster may be found here.
  
• Spybot - Search & Destroy.
  Spybot - Search & Destroy is a spyware and adware removal program. It also has realtime protection, TeaTimer to help safeguard your computer against spyware. (The link for Spybot - Search & Destroy contains a tutorial that will help you download, install, and begin using Spybot).
  

NOTE: Please keep ALL of these programs up-to-date and run them whenever you suspect a problem to prevent malware problems.

Resident Protection help
A number of programs have resident protection and it is a good idea to run the resident protection of one of each type of program to maintain protection. However, it is important to run only one resident program of each type since they can conflict and become less effective. That means only one antivirus, firewall, and scanning anti-spyware program at a time. Passive protectors such as SpywareBlaster can be run with any of them.

Rogue programs help
There are a lot of rogue programs out there that want to scare you into giving them your money and some malware actually claims to be security programs. If you get a popup for a security program that you did not install yourself, do NOT click on it and ask for help immediately. It is very important to run an antivirus and firewall, but you can't always rely on reviews and ads for information. Ask in a security forum that you trust if you are not sure. If you are unsure and looking for anti-spyware programs, you can find out if it is a rogue here:
http://www.spywarewarrior.com/rogue_anti-spyware.htm

Securing your computer

• Windows Updates - It is very important to make sure that both Internet Explorer and Windows are kept current with the latest critical security patches from Microsoft. To do this just start Internet Explorer and select Tools > Windows Update, and follow the online instructions from there.
  
• hpHosts file replaces your current HOSTS file with one containing well known ad sites and other bad sites. This prevents your computer from connecting to those sites by redirecting them to 127.0.0.1, which is your local computer's loopback address, meaning it will be difficult to infect your computer in the future.
  

Please consider using an alternate browser
Mozilla's Firefox browser is a very good alternative. In addition to being generally more secure than Internet Explorer, it has a very good built-in popup blocker and add-ons, like NoScript, can make it even more secure. Opera is another good option.

If you are interested:

• Firefox may be downloaded from here: http://www.getfirefox.com
  
• Opera is available here: http://www.opera.com/download/
  

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